Mail-bag catcher.



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Inventors.

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No. 805,319. PATYENTED NGV. 2l, 1905.

R. M. REAY d: M. LALLY.

MAIL BAG CATOHER. APrLIoA'rIoN FILED s111135, 1905.

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UNITED 4sTATEs PATENT oEEIoE.

ROBERT M. REAY, OF MASSILLON, ND MICHAEL LALLY, OF NORTH LAWRENCE, OHIO.

MAIL-BAG CATCHER.'

No. soasle.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 21, 1905.

Application filed June 5. 1905. Serial No- 263,834.

T all whom zit may concern.-

Be it known that we, ROBERT M. REAY, residing at Massillon, and MICHAEL LALLY, residing at North Lawrence, in the county of Stark and State of Ohio, citizens of the United States, have invented a new and useful Mail- Bag Catcher, of which the following is a speciication.

This invention relates to mail-bag catchers.

The object of the invention is in a novel, positive, and certain manner to remove one or more bags of mail from a car without danger of injury to the attendant 011 of liability of damage to the bag or bags and deposit the latter in a suitable receptacle provided for the purpose.

Vith the above and other objects in View, as will appear as the nature of the invention is better understood, the same consists in the novel construction andV combination of parts of a mail-bag catcher, as will be hereinafter fully described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and in which like characters of reference indicate corresponding parts, Figure 1 is a view in perspective eX- hibiting the mail-catcher of the present vinvention operatively positioned relatively to a railroad-track. Fig. 2isaview in plan. Fig. 3 is a view in vertical transverse section through the mail-bag catcher. Fig. 4: is a sectional detail View of a portion of the interior of a car provided with an appliance to cooperate with the catcher.

Referring to the drawings, C designates a car such as is commonly employed in carrying mail, and provided with the usual door or opening' D, adjacent to which is hinged a shield 1, which is designed to operate in holding the mail-bags B in proper situation to be removed by the catcher to be described later on. The shield 1, as shown in Fig. 2, occupies when in operative position a position oblique to the side of the car and is held against movement, as from the force of the blow of the bags when iirst caught by the catcher, by a keeper- 2 in the nature of a rod of metal, the upper end of which is provided with a hook or loop 3 to engage with the upper edge of the door and the lower end of which is adapted to project through a socket 5, arranged in the floor F of the car. The shield is connected with the door-jamb in any .preferred manner, as by hinges 6, thereby to permit the shield to be folded back against the side of the car when not in use, this being effected by removing the keeper 2.

As above stated, it is one of the objects of this invention to remove one or more bags at the same time from the car, and this is effected by the employment of a strap 7, with which is combined-a suitable buckle for holding it around the bag or bags, and a hook 8, provided with an eye 9, through which the strap is passed, the beakl() of the hook, as shown in Fig. 1, being disposed downward, thus to be in position to be engaged by the catcher.

The mail-bag catcher to which reference has been made comprises a platform 11, which is approximately a segment of a circle in plan and has its curved side disposed when in operative position toward the side of the car and its straight side disposed obliquely thereto, whereby when the hook is engaged by the nose 12 of the platform or catcher the bags will be drawn away from the car, thereby positively precluding any danger of the bag or bags falling upon the track should they by any accident leave the platform.

The platform comprisesa frame consisting of a rod or bar of metal 13, extending the entire length and beyond the straight edge of the platform, and a second bar 14, which is combined with the iirst bar at a point adjacent to the nose 12 and extends rearwardly beyond the vend of the platform and obliquely to the bar 13 to constitute a supporting member for holding the platform in operative position, which is secured by providing keepers 15, that are carried by uprights or posts 16 and through which the bar 14 passes, as shown in Fig. 1. The platform, which is constructed, preferably, of wood, has its upper surface covered by a metallic sheathing 17,

which is secured to the bars 13 and 1-1 by riv- 9 1n order to permit the rivets 18 to be combined with the rods, the rod 13 is seated in a channel. 19 in the edge of the platform and the rod 14 in a channel 20 in the under side of the platform, thereby to secure assemblage of the parts in the manner described.

lt will be noted by reference to Fig. 1 that the normally unsupported side of the platform is toward the car, and this arrangement is adopted in order to permit the platform to ICO IIS

drop to a vertical position after the mail-bag is discharged therefrom, thus to be out of the way. r1`he means for supporting the platform in a horizontal position, as shown in Fig. 3, consists of a keeper or rod 21, the upper end of which is provided with an eye 22 to pass over the rear end of the rod 13 and the lower end of which is pivotally connected with a rod carried by a pair of brackets 23, secured to the platform upon which the superstructure is to be supported. By thus supporting the rod it will beseen that it may be swung through the arc of a circle, thereby to vpermit it readily to be moved into and out of engagement with the rod 13, as the occasion may require. To prevent any outward movement of the platform or a movement toward the car in removing; mail-bags therefrom, there is provided a brace-rod 24, the upper end of which is formed with an eye 25 to engage a staple 26, secured to the platform adjacent to its outer curved edge, the lower end of the rod being formed with a toe 27 to engage an eye or staple 28, carried by one of a pair of uprights or standards 29. So long as the toe 27 is in engagement with the eye 28 it will be seen that all tendency of the platform to be shifted laterally or toward the car will positively be prevented, so that relatively all strain is removed from the bearings 15, in which the rod 141.- is journaled.

`1n order to prevent the hook 8 from leaving the platform, which would permit the Inailbag to escape from the platform and to the ground, there is a guard 30 provided, which is secured to the uprights 29 by brackets 31 projecting therefrom, as clearly shown in Fig. 3, the guard being disposed parallel with the bar 13 and extends practically the entire length thereof, the outer end of the guard, or that adjacent the nose 12, being deflected or curved away from the platform in order to present a widened throat, into which the hook of the mail-bag will readily pass.

In the use of the apparatus the mail-bags, if more than one is to be removed, are assembled in the manner shown in Fig. 1 and are placed on the floor of the car adjacent to the shield 1, with the hook 8 projectingdownward. When thehook comes opposite the platform, the nose thereof will pass between it and the car, and owing to the oblique disposition of the bar 13 the bags will be quickly withdrawn from the car and onto the platform, down which they will travel, being held from escaping therefrom by the guard 30. As stated, the bar 13 is arranged obliquely to the car-tracks, so that as the bags move down the platform they will be directed away from the tracks, so that when they drop from the end of the platform they cannot possibly fall on the track, but will fall upon the Iiooring upon which the platform is supported some distance to one side of the tracks. During the interval that the apparatus is not in use the keeper 21 and brace-rod 24 are detached, respectively, from the bar 13 and eye 28, thus to allow the platform to occupy a position at right angles to that assumed in catching the mail, and hence be out of the way.

It willV be seen from the foregoing description that the arrangement herein described will be positive in securing the objects designed and, further, that it will be capable of handling or removing from a car any number of bags that may be secured together; furthermore, that all danger of injury to the mail-bags, as by falling upon the tracks, is positively precluded.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is- 1. A mail-bag catcher embodying a pivoted platform having' one edge disposed obliquely to the track adjacent to which it is arranged.

2. A mail-bag catcher embodying a pivoted platform having one edge disposed obliquely to the track adjacent to which it is arranged, aid a guard disposed parallel with the said e ge.

3. A mail-bag catcher embodying a platform supported for swinging movement from vertical to horizontal position, and means for locking it in the latter position.

4;. A mail-bag catcher embodying a platform mounted for swinging movement from a vertical to horizontal position, a keeper detachably combined with the rear part of the platform to hold itin horizontal position, and a brace-rod for holding the platform against lateral movement.

5. A mail-bag catcher comprising' a platform having one end reduced to constitute a nose, and having one side disposed obliquely to the track adjacent to which the platform is mounted.

6. A mail-bag catcher comprising a platform having one end reduced to constitute a nose, and having one side disposed obliquely to the track adjacent to which the platform is mounted, and a guard spaced from and disposed parallel with one edge of the platform.

7. The combination with a railway-car, provided with a doorway, of a shield arranged at the doorway and disposed parallel with the floor and disposed obliquely to the side of the car.

8. The combination with a railway-car provided with a doorway, of a hinged shield arranged at the doorway and disposed parallel with the floor and detachable means for holding the shield in oblique position relatively to the side of the car.

In testimony that we claim the foregoing as our own wehave hereto affixed our signatures in the presence of two witnesses.

ROBERT M. REAY. MlGHAEL LALLY. Witnesses:

ALEXANDER L. HIRSCHBERG, C. F. PORTER. 

